Djinn Hunter #4

Djinn Hunter #4

Blackbox Comics 2021

Written by Jay Sandlin

Illustrated & Lettered by Fabrizio Cosentino

Zara faces Abyss, learning quickly the Elder Djinn is far too powerful. Having no other alternative, Zara turns to the one person in the realms she hoped never to face again: the Sorceress Samira, her lost love. But after ghosting her centuries ago, will Samira be thrilled to see her ex again?

I’m so glad there is one more issue of this left! I thought at the end of last issue this was surely going to be the finale, so glad that I was mistaken. I’m also thrilled beyond belief with the amount of story being told and how much action we see to go with it. The balance really is superb and how each serves to work with and strengthen the other elements is some darn fine storytelling. I’m also incredibly impressed with the way we see the backstory between Zara and Abyss and this pertains to her current predicament. There is a lot of storytelling going on here that is so involved and deep that it really makes you stop and think, you become so engaged in the story and it takes you off script and into your own mind beautifully.

I am a huge fan of the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well. The character development that we see through the narration, the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter continues to spotlight their ever evolving and changing personalities. A great example is Zara’s growing affection and friendship with Bennu. The pacing is excellent and as it takes us through the pages revealing more and more of the story the more we want to see how the past played out more fully. I’m serious because all the machinations and naivete that we see from Zara and her trust in a council elder well that’s the stuff that shapes who someone becomes.

I’m enjoying how we see this being structured and how the layers within the story continue to emerge, grow, evolve and strengthen. The layers open up new avenues we so want to see explored and while some are and others aren't they all add this great depth, dimension and complexity to the story. The way that everything works together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward is impeccably rendered.

I love, love, love the interiors here. Just the way we see the imagery is sensational and it shows how far we’ve come in terms of computer generated art. If this isn’t computer generated then I’m even more impressed. The linework is gorgeous and how we see the varying weights and techniques being utilised to create the detail within the work that we see is bloody sensational. That we see backgrounds, either in space or the pocket dimension, is fabulous as this enhances and expands the moments. They also work within the composition of the panels bringing out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a masterful eye for storytelling. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work shows a phenomenal understanding of how colour works.

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If you aren’t reading this I highly recommend that you do. It is a much more honest take on Djinn and the idea of having them grant your wishes. There is a price for everything and unless you spell something out down to the most minutiae detail you will be sorry you got your wish granted. This is extremely well written with some spectacular characterisation and some bloody impressive interiors.